Classic Gazpacho Recipe (like they make it in Spain)
There's a point every August where the tomatoes stop being part of the garden and start being a problem. This week it was Roma, cherry, and yellow pear tomatoes taking over every counter surface in my kitchen, and gazpacho was the only responsible thing to do with them.
A little known fact about me: I'm fluent in Spanish and I studied abroad in Córdoba, in southern Spain, during my junior year of college. I took a cooking class there where I first learned to make real gazpacho.
One thing that threw me for a loop at the time: they put bread right IN the soup. It sounded so strange to me then, but it's what gives traditional gazpacho its body and that silkier texture. I had some sourdough on hand this time around, so in it went. If you're gluten free or just keeping things lower carb, you can skip it entirely, the soup is still delicious without it.
Gazpacho is one of those recipes that proves food as medicine doesn't have to be complicated. It's raw tomatoes, cucumber, onion, garlic, olive oil, and vinegar, blended cold. No cooking, no processing, just whole food doing what whole food does. Tomatoes bring lycopene and vitamin C, cucumber supports hydration, and the olive oil isn't just for flavor. Fat helps you absorb the fat soluble carotenoids in the tomatoes, so that generous pour of olive oil is functional, not just traditional.
Ingredients:
6 cups mixed ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped (I used Roma, cherry, and yellow pear from the garden)
1 medium cucumber, peeled and roughly chopped, reserve 2 tablespoons diced small for garnish
1/2 medium white onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
2 slices day old sourdough bread, torn into pieces (optional, skip for gluten free or lower carb)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1-2 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar, to taste
1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
For garnish:
Reserved diced cucumber
Halved cherry tomatoes
Fresh basil leaves, torn
A drizzle of good olive oil
Instructions:
Add the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, garlic, torn bread, one tablespoon of the vinegar, salt, and pepper to a blender. Blend until completely smooth. A Vitamix handles this in one batch, but if your blender is smaller you can split into two. A food processor will also work well.
With the blender running, slowly stream in the olive oil until fully incorporated. Streaming it in at the end emulsifies it into the soup rather than just blending it in, which gives you a smoother, creamier texture.
Taste and adjust. If it needs more brightness, add the remaining vinegar. If it tastes flat, it usually needs more salt.
Chill for at least 2 hours, ideally overnight. The flavor rounds out significantly as it sits.
Serve cold in bowls or glasses, topped with the reserved diced cucumber, halved cherry tomatoes, torn basil, and a final drizzle of olive oil.
Makes 6 servings
Nutrition per serving with bread: 208 Calories, 17 grams Carbs, 4 grams Protein, 15 grams Fat, 3 grams Fiber
Without bread: 176 Calories, 10 grams Carbs, 2 grams Protein, 15 grams Fat, 2 grams Fiber